With over 170 performances and a SAMA-nominated album between them, Pops Mohamed (Jo’burg) and Dave Reynolds (Namibia) are joining forces once again, this time alongside Ronan Skillen (Ireland) and Charlton Daniels (Cape Town), in their pivotal Afro-jazz collaborative show, Pan African Calling.

Their unique concert will combine the talents of diverse musicians to bring forth a distinctive combination of jazz and world influences which stretch from Africa to India and Australia in their instrumental origins.

Pops Mohamed is widely considered one of South Africa’s most versatile musicians. With a background which traces his lineage across India and Portugal as well as deep-set Xhosa and Khoisan roots, he navigates an indigenous-contemporary-crossover sound, which has evolved from his jazz roots. Winner of the ACT Lifetime Achievers Award and with 38 albums under his belt, the traditional multi-instrumentalist plays the kora (African harp), mbira (thumb piano), Khoisan bow as well as a variety of percussion effects, and has worked extensively with the Khoisan people of the Kalahari.

Master of the steelpan, SAMRO Award-winning composer and acoustic guitarist Dave Reynolds, has worked globally with the likes of Steve Newman, Andy Narell and the late Hugh Masekela and is a 6-time SAMA nominee.

Ireland-born Ronan Skillen has travelled to Australia to learn the origins of the didgeridoo, which he first picked up at the age of 16, from the Aboriginals. He has spent extensive time in India studying the tabla (Indian hand drum) under the tutelage of Usad Akram Khan, as well as Ghana and South Africa where he has mastered African drum-work too. His fusion of tabla, percussion and didgeridoo has seen him perform in over 15 countries, and alongside Rodrigeuz, Johnny Clegg and Freshly Ground.

Cape Town-based Charlton Daniels, when he’s not providing the integral bass backbone to Pan African Calling, can be found among the ranks of the swiftly rising jazz outfit Top Dog SA, or driving the Jonathan Butler band.

Pan African Calling is a global call for people from all backgrounds to come together through music. The collaborative show will exhibit a unique musical offering which brings together each musicians’ individual talents into a cumulative, deeply cultural jazz showcase.

In addition to the concert, the four artists will be hosting Skhulu’s Lounge Jazz Workshop, in collaboration with Plett Tourism. The two-hour co-creative workshop will allow participants to determine the direction it takes – providing a unique platform for participants to learn from the greats, through a series of group discussions and jam sessions.

Participants are invited to bring along their own instruments (if they have, but all are welcome), and take part in a unique sharing of knowledge, to develop further musical skills and to cultivate an interest into the unifying aspects of world music.